Every year people in Cocullo, a small medieval town in Italy's Abruzzo region, adorn a wooden statue of its patron saint with live snakes and parade it through the streets. The "serpari" festival, on 1 May, honours San Domenico di Sora for miraculously removing snakes from farmers' fields in the 11th Century .

However, it is also said to originate from the ancient worship of Angitia, a Roman goddess of snakes worshipped by people in central Italy. Some people wear outfits that are traditional to the Abruzzo region. Snake catchers and charmers - or serpari - catch four types of harmless snakes, before handing them out to worshippers.